[HPforGrownups] Re: Draco and another HP college course

[Starling]

No: HPFGUIDX 18364

heidi wrote:
***As Cassie & I have discussed many times, we do not like the idea that 
someone who JKR introduced us to as a ten-or-eleven-year-old child is 
going to do nothing but follow some pre-ordained path to evil. If it 
is our choices that make us what we are, then shouldn't Draco get a 
choice at some point? Or is he just there to be hauled by Lucius 
Malfoy, who is evil, to Voldemort's side, then held down to get the 
Dark Mark, then trapped in the Evil!Universe forever? At a minimum, 
he could at least have a conflict about accepting the evil in him, 
and becoming evil - to be honest, that wouldn't bother me as much as 
it would if there's no demonstration of his making that decision. 
Right now he's spouting the vitriol he's been taught - but he also 
might be warning hermione (at the World Cup) and the rest of the (on 
the train). ***

Draco's a messy topic.  I'm not sure how to react to a lot of the debate on him, because I think a lot of my intrepretations are based on *my* wish for Draco to not be an evil git more than what is really present in the books.

The one thing I am certain of when I see Draco is how much he reminds me of friends I had in high school.  I bet there isn't a person on this list who hasn't known someone in that sort of situation.  The person I'm thinking of in particular wasn't really a friend, just an acquaintance.  Her parents were divorced, the family was struggling to get by, and she was not goign to be able to go to college.  She had to get a job and she would complain all the time that she could just see her life spiraling into the same trap her parents had fallen into, and she couldn't find a way out.

I see Draco in a very similiar trap.  His parents have a very clear set of expectations laid out for him, his life is pretty much planned out and he really doesn't have a foothold anywhere.  I think he's desparate for some sort of control, somewhere, anywhere, and he'll take what he can get, and making fun of Gryffindors, and a lot of his other actions, is a way to have that.  

I do think Draco's going to have a chance to make a choice, but I don't see it as much as deciding to be "good" or "evil" as much as choosing to let his dad control his life...or to finally make his own decisions.  For him, good and evil are secondary.  I can see him switching sides, should he decide to move away from his father, but more to establish himself as an individual than out of a desire to be "good."

Part of the whole Draco issue is the fact, which so many people have touched on, that we only see him through Harry's eyes.  If we got to see Draco in the Slytherin common room, or at home with Daddy Dearest, I think we'd have an incredibly viewpoint, but unless JKR decides to start mucking with her formula (and i hope she doesn't!) we'll have to stick to our imaginations...the incredibly fertile places that they are <g>.

Harry at college:

regarding the whole college classes on HP -- I'm a student at Binghamton University, everyone's favorite SUNY school (so I plug state funded education shamelessly.  Deal <g>).  This year's summer session includes an english course devoted to the HP books, which is now making me very sour that I can't stay for the session. For general interest (and anyone who might be in the area at that time, unlike me...):

      Department: ENGLISH, GENERAL LITERATURE AND RHETORIC 
      Course Number: ENG 112H Section: 01 Term: II Credits: 4  
      Course Type: Discussion 
      Description: Harry Potter mania is sweeping the country in full force; with the upcoming movie and the promise of three more books, that is not likely to slow down. In this course, we will take a close look at the books themselves, at the plots, characters, and themes that weave together to create the highly popular, and somewhat controversial, world of Harry Potter.  Students will read the Harry Potter books, as well as theoretical work dealing with myths.  Format: Students should expect lively discussions, group projects, and emphasis on the writing process.  At least 50% of the grade will be based on writing and revising several short papers totaling 20 pages.  Students will be expected to revise their work in response to instructor commentary, peer review, and self-editing techniques.

      I have a friend who might be taking this class so I'll let everyone know at the end of it what she thought.  

      Abbie, who would much rather take a class on Harry than the boring history class she's currently up all night writing papers for... blaah.  :-p 
starling823 at yahoo.com
69% obsessed with HP and loving it
"Ah, music," Dumbledore said, wiping his eyes.  "A magic beyond all we do here!"
          -HP and the Sorcerer's Stone



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